The Cost
by LaurenKane4610
Summary: Sirius survives the batle at the Department of Misteries. However, t hat survival comes with a price.


A/n: I love Sirius! Tonks and Lupin, too. If I get some reviews, I'll make this a series of oneshots!

Disclaimer: I'm just rewriting the end of HP 5. I don't own Hp.

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"Dumbledore!" Neville said. Harry looked at him like he'd lost his marbles, then followed his gaze to the man standing in the door. There, looking white and furious, was Albus Dumbledore. Everyone stopped fighting. Well, almost everyone. One pair continued dueling, unaware of the new arrival. Sirius and Bellatrix, aiming to kill. Harry could only watch in horror, although he wanted to run to his godfather's aid.

"Is that the best you can do?" Sirius laughed, dodging his cousin's curse. Bellatrix threw an even worse curse his way, and it caught Sirius in the chest. Harry pulled his wand, and aimed it at Sirius, who was starting to fall backwards.

"Wingardium leviosa!" he yelled. Sirius rose about three feet into the air, and Harry lunged out, grabbing him by the arm, and pulling him away from the veil.

His eyes flashed to Bellatrix, who was making a run for it. Harry shoved Sirius onto a bench, and tore after her, deadset on revenge.

Unfortunately, by the time he reached the atrium, Voldemort had aperated into the lobby. Harry's hatred and anger seemed to reach an all time high.

He ran at Voldemort, deadset on ending him. Voldemort flicked his wand casually, and Harry flew back, slamming into the owall. Voldemort advanced, and aimed his wand again. "Avada kadavara." Harry didn't have a second to resist, no matter how much he wanted to. His head was spinning, stars dancing in his vision, from the force of his impact with the wall. His arm was starting to swell up, as well. But fortunately, the fates were on his side.

With a loud crash that reverberated through the entire hall, the statues in the fountain jumped off their pedistals, and charged at different targets.

The witch charged at Bellatrix, who screamed and hurled spell after spell at it, all of which seemed to bounce clean off of it. The sentaur stepped in front of Harry, shielding him from the jet of green light that was this close to hitting him. The wizard and house-elf ran to join the assault on Bellatrix. The goblen stepped up protectively next to the person who activated him; Albus Dubledore, looking so angry, so furious, that Harry shivered even though the anger wasn't aimed at him.

Harry could only watch as the fight broke out all around him, the sentaur shielding him from the spells flying in all dirrections. His knees gave out, and he slid down the wall, landing on the floor.

Dumbledore dueled like he'd been waiting for this moment for a long time. Harry was surprised when Voldemort disappeared suddenly, although not much was registering in his muddled brain. He started to move out from behind the sentaur, but Dumbledore's voice stopped him in his tracks. "Stay where you are, Harry!" For the first time in Harry's memory, Dumbledore sounded frightened.

The next thing Harry was aware of was blinding pain. He saw red; a red beast that he was intertwined with, one with, and had no way of separating with.

He felt the beast use him. "Kill me then, Dumbledore." The voice that issued from his mouth was high and cold, and scared the daylights out of him. Then, "If death is nothing, kill the boy."

Please! Harry found himself thinking. Death would be nothing compared to this. End it now, Dumbledore. He'd be able to see his parents, Cedric, all of the people who had died because of him. With that surge of eomzn, Harry felt the beast relinquish his hold on him, and then... nothing.

"Harry! Harry!" Harry slowly opened his eyes to find Albus Dumbledore standing over him, staring concernedly into his eyes. "Are you alright?"

"I..." he said weakly. Dubledore didn's seem to need him to say anymore.

"You're shaking, my boy."

"He was here!" Fudge?

"Everything... spinning." Harry said.

"He... here! In the Minstry of Magic!"

"He was here, Minister! He grabbed a woman and disaperated!" The doors at the end of the hall burst open, and Ginny, Nevilbe, Luna, Kingsley, Lupin, Tonks, Ron, Hermione, Madeye, and Sirius rushed out. There was a crowd around Harry, but Sirius pushed his way through, eyes wide, heart pounding at the sight that greetow him.

"Harry!" he exclaimed, dropping down next to him.

"Sirius Black! Aurors, seize him!"

"Cornelius!" Dumbledore boomed. Sirius's gaze was temorarily removed from the sight in front of his eyes to look up at the minister.

"Minister," Dumbledore said, "Sirius Black is innocent."

"Where's your proff!" Fudge demands.

"Do you have any Veritaserum? We could test him right now." Dumbledore said, giving Sirius an appologetic look. Sirius, however, had turned his attention to more important matters.

"Harry!" he exclaimed, staring at the pron figure in front out him. Harry's eyes were slightly open, but unfocused. There was blood by his head, slowly creating a puddle. His arm was now swelling quite rapidly, and he was shaking as though he had been trapped in the freezing cold for hours, although sweat was beading up on his forehead.

"Ohmygods, Harry." His heart pounded against his ribs as he felt for his godson's pulse. There it was, quick, franticly beating against his fingers, as though determined to prove that it was still there. Sirius breathed a sigh of relief, knowing Harry would be alright. Knowing he was alive.

"Black, take this." Fudge barked. Sirius turned, and took the small crystal vial. His eyes met Dumbledoore's for a split second before he drained the vial.

"So, Black, tell us your story." Fudge demanded. So Sirius did. Once he was done, Fudge, looking angry, said, "V...' well... cleared... all charges." Then, he disaperated.

"Sirius," Dumbledore said, "we need to get Harry out of here. Do you think you can aperate with him?"

"Yes." Sirius said, before gently scooping Harry into his arms. Even though he was as gentle as possible, Harry still let out a smal, pained moan.

"Sorry." Sirius said, biting his lil.

"On second thought," Dumbledore said, "maybe aperating won't be such a good idaa. Here." He threw some floo powder onto one of the fires, and gestured for Sirius to carry Harry through. Sirius pulled a hankerchief from his pocket, and tied it carefully around Harry's nose and mouth. Then, he stepped forward into the flames, shouting "Hogwarts!" No sooner did they step out of the fire in Dumbledore's office then did Harry start gagging. Sirius grabbed a trash can, and sat there, holding Harry while he was sick, doing his best to care for him.

Dumbledore appeared a moment later, looking concerned as he took in the scene: Sirius holding Harry, Harry leaning over a trash can, and the sickly appestance of the boy.

"Hospital wing." he said. "I'll meet with you sm, Harry. Sirius, I'm assuming you want to stay with him?" Sirius nodded, and stood up, still holding Harry as gently as possible.

"Come on." he murmured, heading for the spiral escelator. Harry closed his eyes, andleaned his head against Sirius's shoulder. Sirius tried not to panic, but it was hard for him.

Madam Pomphrey quickly showed Sirius to a bed, although she clearly wanted to take Harry from him. And it was clear that she didn't trust him one bit, although she was being cordial, most likely on Dumbledore's instructions.

"Get him changed." she said, handing over a pair of pajamas. This was more easily said than done, because Harry was so weak. It took almost fifteen minutes, but finally, Sirius had him changed and tucked into the bed. Madam Pomfrey came bustling back over.

She examined Harry closely, while Sirius anxiously awaited the verdict. "Severe concussion, broken arm, pobbsible posesion. Nothing sermanent." The nurse gave Harry two potions: one for the concussion, and one for dreamless sleep, then mended his arm.

"Do you have any injuries?" Sirius shook his head, and sat in the chair next to Harry's bedside.

"Harry saved me."

"I see." Madam Pomphrey said. She watched Harry for a few minutes, presumably to check for any side-effects of the potions or his time at the Ministry.

"He should get some sleep." she said, before heading over to where Lupin was struggling with Ron. Kingsley was carrying Hermione, and Tonks had Ginny. Madeye had both Neville and Luna, who apparently had gotten into a duel with Malfoy, and walked away the winner, but much the worse for wear.

"Oh goodness!" Madam Pomphrey exclaimed, looking around. "Okay. Granger over there. I'll get Weasley. Longbottom and Lovegood over there; you don't have as severe injuries. Weasley as well. Who here knows the basics of magical first aid?" Tonks qaised a hand, and stepped over to examine the three with the minor injuries. Kingsley stepped over to assist, and Lupin made his way over to Sirius.

"Cleared, eh, Padfoot?"

"Yeah." Sirius replied absently.

"How is he?" Lupin asked.

"Out cold." Sirius said quietly. "Madam Pomphrey said he should be okay. Or as okay as one can be after that."

Neville was the first to leave the hospital wing, followed closely by Ginny and Luna. Hermione was roused, but was told to stay overnight so someone could keep an eye on her. Ron was doing better, but he still a ways to go before he could be released.

"Insanity charm." Madam Pomphey tutted, shaking her head. "He'll be alright, but it will take some time."

That seemed to be the general consensis for everyone involved. They'd be alright, but it would take some time. But everyone would move forward. And that was the important thing.

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a/n: Yep, I hope you liked this. Review and let me know! Later!

Lauren.


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